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One of the difficulties with which I constantly grapple is what I would have done differently my first year, given that hindsight is of course 20/20. I made many, many mistakes, I handled some things very well, and while I definitely wouldn't give myself any Teacher of the Year awards, I would say that I was among at least the top third of teachers in overall effectiveness at my school. The first year of teaching is a noble attempt, and whether that attempt goes well or poorly, it is still an attempt. Maybe in some way I'm like that middle of the road student when it comes to teaching ability - always trying, never quite getting there - but someday I'm confident that I will have that breakthrough moment when it all just snaps into place in my head. This is to say that I don't think I would go back and change anything even if I could. Why? Glad you asked...
If you've kept up with my blogs (or with me in real life for that matter) you know that I describe my Latin class this year as bipolar, with many many incredible students and many many poor ones who never tried. After my initial anxious honeymoon period as teacher in which I tried to reach every single student every single day gradually faded, I found myself more and more teaching only to those students who actually did their homework and consistently with the others falling by the wayside. Many of my students mistook this for favoritism and elitism on my part with the best students, but what they didn't see was that my 'favoritism' extended to those who showed effort, not just those who succeeded. And here I'll be succinct: my biggest regret was that I feel like I gave up to easily with many of my students, but at the same time once I did that those who showed effort really soared under my tutelage. Class became quicker-paced, more exciting and fun and laid-back, and whereas beforehand no one on either side of the bar above and below were happy with it in the middle, at least those above the bar were happy that it was raised eventually afterwards.
It's a conundrum, truly. I don't really care what the reason for it is, but if a student is unwilling or unable to keep up it's his own fault. But perhaps it's my fault for not having been more inspiring to help them keep up. Is it my job to be that inspiring that students just can't help but do my homework all the time? Society and I both agree that perhaps that is my job, but there's a part of me that says no way, that's crazy and nearly impossible, if our education system relied on that then the whole thing would crumble because it's so rare. Someone between the parent and the child needs to be responsible enough to ensure that the student realizes a love of learning, and then the educator can enter the picture and nurture that love and feed it substance. I'm not entirely sure, I'd love to hear what others have to say about it...
If you've kept up with my blogs (or with me in real life for that matter) you know that I describe my Latin class this year as bipolar, with many many incredible students and many many poor ones who never tried. After my initial anxious honeymoon period as teacher in which I tried to reach every single student every single day gradually faded, I found myself more and more teaching only to those students who actually did their homework and consistently with the others falling by the wayside. Many of my students mistook this for favoritism and elitism on my part with the best students, but what they didn't see was that my 'favoritism' extended to those who showed effort, not just those who succeeded. And here I'll be succinct: my biggest regret was that I feel like I gave up to easily with many of my students, but at the same time once I did that those who showed effort really soared under my tutelage. Class became quicker-paced, more exciting and fun and laid-back, and whereas beforehand no one on either side of the bar above and below were happy with it in the middle, at least those above the bar were happy that it was raised eventually afterwards.
It's a conundrum, truly. I don't really care what the reason for it is, but if a student is unwilling or unable to keep up it's his own fault. But perhaps it's my fault for not having been more inspiring to help them keep up. Is it my job to be that inspiring that students just can't help but do my homework all the time? Society and I both agree that perhaps that is my job, but there's a part of me that says no way, that's crazy and nearly impossible, if our education system relied on that then the whole thing would crumble because it's so rare. Someone between the parent and the child needs to be responsible enough to ensure that the student realizes a love of learning, and then the educator can enter the picture and nurture that love and feed it substance. I'm not entirely sure, I'd love to hear what others have to say about it...
posted by David Jones | 16:37
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